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February 2009

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Description: Please note. Anything you find on my blog is yours for the taking. Please use, share and make money from anything I have created and posted here excluding anything refering to Heal My Hands because that's how I make my living. Now mind you, this only applies to MY work, craft and cooking related. Patterns, sources and information credited to others still belongs to them and you would have to ask their permission as usual. But otherwise - what's mine is yours. I won't sue you - I promise. There's just too much of that going on already.

Very Cool Stuff

June 23, 2008

Well we lost another one - this time to a coyote; Big Red is no more. I felt terrible when it happened, as Big Red was the brave one, now it's Blackie. I know this is "the way it is" with farm animals, and it will probably happen again, but I can't help feeling so sad about them both.

And on that note, I also fell terribly sad that George Carlin is gone, much too soon. We sorely need his constant questioning and his acerbic wit was refreshing. I remember clearly when I heard him blurt out the "Seven Words You Can't Say on TV or the Radio". It was 1972, the year after I was married and I can remember thinking that this certainly was a new world if you could say those things in public! http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/06/23/9815/ I bought his albums (remember those) and watched his HBO specials and I'll miss him.

So we've been busy as usual, we've been cleaning and painting the new studio/manufacturing space for Heal My Hands and 8 Arms Creative and I'll post photos as soon as we get our office moved into it! The colors are amazing too - wait till you see! We've been doing just a bit of hiking too, and last week up on the Windsor Trail (10,800 ft) there was snow!

Suleiman has been doing a bit of swimming in the pond, and I'll post a photo of it as soon as I get the wrought iron furniture painted up. We bought and released three bullfrog tadpoles too. Unfortunately I didn't realize that bullfrog tadpoles take two years to mature! I was thinking I'd fall asleep to the music of bullfrogs... of well, maybe next year.

I've also made a couple of necklaces, one in braided Irish Linen with drop, pressed glass and silver beads, and another in silver beads with an aquamarine, a pressed glass leaf and a Hill Tribe silver charm. And a very pretty freeform peyote stitch bracelet, which oddly, I can't find the photo of) I call Riverwalk. It really is nice to actually make something beaded that turns out the way it's supposed to. Thanks Marty!

August 08, 2007

I've been absent. Not from my life, which has been full to bursting, but from my blog, and all of you. And I'm sorry. It isn't because I don't want to share all of the things that have been keeping me so busy, but because I've wanted to share it all too much and my mind runs on much faster than my fingers can type. Does that make sense? I've tried to sit down and type all of the things I have been thinking and feeling for a couple of weeks now, and haven't had the intestinal fortitude, or the typing skills, to do it.

But a friend sent me a funny this morning and I just had to share it. Many of you have seen this before, but as I hadn't, it may be new to some of you. And it embodies my thoughts about spirituality these days, more on that later, so here it is:

The following is an actual question given on a University of Washington chemistry mid-term. The answer by one student was so "profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues, via the Internet, which is, Of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well:

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant.

One student, however, wrote the following:

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate at which they are leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving.

As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there is more than One of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, We can project that all souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially.

Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added. This gives two possibilities:

1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.

2. If Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in Hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.

So which is it? If we accept the postulate given to me by Teresa during my freshman year that, "It will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you," and take into account the act that I slept with her last night, then number two must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already frozen over. The corollary of this theory is that since Hell has frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is therefore, extinct......leaving only Heaven, thereby proving the existence of a divine being which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh my God."

THIS STUDENT RECEIVED THE ONLY "A"

There was an article in this month's issue of AARP magazine (yes friends, I am old enought to get AARP) that talked about the spiritual beliefs of the over 50 crowd. Apparently, more of them believe in an afterlife than had been noted in previous years. Some of them believe in Hell and Heaven. A few of them believe that there is nothing at all after death. Interesting that people's beliefs are changing over time. I can only attribute this shift to the introduction and subsequent adoption of Eastern religions, primarily Buddhism, in the US over the past three decades. Personally, I have never believed in Hell and Heaven as "places" and have always thought, even as a practicing Catholic, that we all got as many shots at it as we needed to reach higher states of consciousness. Re-incarnation in other words.

That said; last night, for myself, I crystallized the fact that we create out own Hells and Heavens right here on earth. This line of thought may seem trite and tired to you. "Duh - of course, so what?" You may be thinking. But it was made so sharp and clear to me after the day I had with my daughters, one of whom is fretting about her job and life and the other whom is fretting about her weight and whether we'll be safe in our new home and state (more on this later) and in particular, whether or not we'll have water in case of a drought. She worries, that one, about everything. Which is what leads me to the reason I am writing this particular post when I have so many other things to tell you about.

In the face of all the fretting, both on Holly's part and mine (and believe me, I fret enough for all of us about everything too), I became overwhelmed with worry. Will we have enough money, will we have enough work, will HMH do well enough, will I have friends, will we be okay in the new house, will we be okay in the "wilderness", will missing the girls be bearable or will I crumble, will I be able to create freeform there, will I be able to write there, will I be able to deal with the fact that we are no longer in the "civilized" Northeast, and will going to the post office everyday to pick up the mail because there's no mail delivery drive me crazy after about a week. And that's only the tip of the iceberg.

While we were standing outside at the car (and I was being eaten alive by mosquitoes) saying goodbye for the evening, I had to reassure her that we would be okay. That we would NOT run out of water in the desert, and that I would in fact make friends once again in the new place and that she would be able to come and see us whenever she wanted and that we would in fact come home on a regular basis; flying in the face of my own fears and pushing them out of the picture so I could comfort her. I realized that I had entirely to many fears and worries to actually spend any more time worrying about them - I had too much work to do. I had no time for the Hell on Earth of worry I had created - I needed a Heaven.

I wish I could tell you that right at that moment I let it all go and like a baptism in the river, let the light of freedom from fear wash over me. But that's not what happened. What did happen, was that I was able to acknowledge the fact that we might be making a mistake by moving across the country to a place we have no knowledge of other than what we saw on vacation and read in the Santa Fe New Mexican - but we wouldn't know that until we got there. And that was okay. I realized that life is full of mistakes and bad decisions and that I would probably make a hell of a lot more of them. And so what? I could either beat myself up about them, or move on and remedy them as best I could. I could fret in anticipation of the next mistake, or boldly step ahead into my future trusting that everything will work out - one way or another. In other words, I could create Hell or Heaven all by myself.

I sincerely hope. in the Buddhist scope of things, that next time around, I will have accumulated enough merit to have a "better" life. But honestly between you and me? I think this one hasn't been all that bad, and like Heaven, it's getting better all the time.

June 08, 2006

Is it me? Or are all of you terrified by the goings on at the EPA? I honestly cannot believe that this stuff doesn't make front page headlines in newspapers across the country. Is it because no-one knows how deeply into Monsanto's pockets the EPA has crawled? Is it because no-one really believes how much damage the pesticides the EPA is condoning will do to our children? The EPA problem is an ongoing soapbox for me, and every once and a while it spills over here. So if you're not up for a rant, stop reading. But if you really want to know...

If the reason we all aren't screaming bloody murder to our government representatives is that we truly don't realize the extent of the horror, read this from Organic Consumers:

“The EPA’s rule puts pesticide companies’ profits ahead of human health and scientific integrity,” said Dr. Robert Gould, a pathologist and president of San Francisco Bay Area Physicians for Social Responsibility. “Pesticide companies should not be allowed to take advantage of vulnerable populations by enticing people to serve as human laboratory rats.”

There are so many things wrong at the EPA that detailing them all would take more time than I have. And unfortunately, all of them effect each and every one of us, personally. From tying the hands of dairy companies striving to let consumer's know that their products do not contain hormones or antibiotics to approving the use of devastatingly human-toxic pesticides on the crops we eat and feed to our children, the EPA is killing us all. And the awful truth is that we are their accomplices - through our ignorance and our inaction.

STAND UP, SAY NO and protect yourselves and your families. Even if the least you do is educate yourselves - do it now. Join the Organic Consumers Association and subscribe to Organic Bytes, their newsletter so that you're at least aware of what's being done to you. Sign a petition - they really do work. Many EPA moves have been defeated by a public outcry. Knowing is half the battle - fighting is the other half. Know for your own safety - fight for your family.

September 27, 2005

In 2001, Vice President Dick Cheney said, "Conservation may be a sign of personal virtue, but it cannot be the basis of a sound energy policy." Also that year, Ari Fleischer, then Mr. Bush's press secretary, responded to a question about reducing American energy consumption by saying "that's a big no."

"The president believes that it's an American way of life," Mr. Fleischer said.

But today, the president said:

"We can all pitch in," Mr. Bush said. "People just need to recognize that the storms have caused disruption," he added, and that if Americans are able to avoid going "on a trip that's not essential, that would be helpful."

Mr. Bush promised to dip further into the government's petroleum reserve, if necessary, and to continue relaxing environmental and transportation rules in an effort to get more gasoline flowing.

Translation? We're going to be drilling for oil and gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and building refineries willy nilly. But increase the gas mileage requirements for auto manufacturers? Conserve energy; give up our beloved SUV's? Why? What's the emergency? Why change the American way of life? If we ignore it, it'll go away like it has in the past. Hell, we're AMERICAN! We do what we want! Let's just not talk about it anymore. Shortage? What shortage? I don't see any shortage? I can still go to the grocery store as many times as I want....

April 01, 2005

I really wanted to think up some insanely funny April Fools Day joke for this post. Unfortunately, I'm not that funny, not even on a good day. Moreover, the head cold I picked up from my granddaughter on Easter Sunday has prevented clear thinking of any kind. I even thought momentarily of calling my daughter and telling her I was pregnant, but if she passed out and hit her head or something, no one would have thought I was funny in the least.

I'm off to bed, a mega hit of cold drugs and Science Fiction Friday, where A. and I eat junk food and watch Star Gate, Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica. I get a lot of knitting done during these shows.

March 22, 2005

Okay, the bad first. My thumb hurts. It's a mouse related pain. A. switched my trackball today to a wireless standard configuration because I had so much work to do that I couldn't possibly stay off the computer. I know, I know,I shouldn't be typing this but the need to post far outweighs the need not to.

I so want to finish the third little beret in an adorable watermelon pink that I was unable to knit on last night because the pain was too much. I sat flipping The channels with my hand wrapped in a flax seed warmer woobie I made to soothe tense shoulders last year - it zaps in the microwave and feels soooo good on sore parts. Felt much better last night - fells pretty nasty right now. Sigh.

All this in addition to going to a Navajo Weaving demonstration, babysitting DGD #2 on Friday, shopping for and making Pashka (Russian Sweet Cheese Spread for which I'll post the 2 trillion calorie recipe after Easter), going to the Orchid Show at the NY Botanical Gardens, getting my hair cut... Well you get the idea. Now with this throbbing thumb, I'm feeling like brushing my teeth will be an accomplishment.

As for the good. My six year old granddaughter Madeline had a baby tooth pulled today to make room for a grown-up tooth and she didn't cry! That's a grand thing I tell you. When I took her mother to the dentist I needed three tranquilizers. One for her, one for me and one for the dentist. I always thought it a shame, during these horrific ordeals, that I didn't drink. Somehow, my daughter managed to wiggle out of the Third Law of Parental Return that states "You Get as Good as You Give". She managed to get a daughter that doesn't mind the dentist. Hmmm. Where did I go wrong?

As for the ugly, while rummaging around in my stash, I came across a couple of balls of singularly ugly yarn. I can't imagine what I was thinking when I bought them. I can't even chalk it up to the "seemed like a good idea at the time" excuse because I can't imagine thinking these weird acyclic/wool blend colors were EVER a good idea. So, off to the Goodwill bag. No-one need ever know and I'll pretend it never happened.

February 21, 2005

So the day slows to a snow crawl for me, at least mentally. The snow is lovely on the trees and the birds are happy at the feeders. Not that I wasn't busy. I helped A clear the snow from the driveway and I was instrumental in helping (by tasting, closing my eyes and making mmmmm sounds) him create a heart stopping mole sauce for tonights enchiladas, then I finished labeling and packing the order for Patternworks - whew, that one ships tomorrow. But somehow the whiteness induces a state of quiet (which is good, because I'm babysitting tommorow and Wednesday).

I am down the leg of the second sock of the very summery feather and fan duo in the lovely Sockotta (see last post) and will turn the heel tonight. I would not have known it was Sockotta were it not for the outpouring of helpful responses to my Socknitters list question about this - I love you all!

And the Dumbell award goes to [insert drumroll] the one who baked the espresso brownies last night, looked at them, swore they were done, took them out, cooled them and when she went to serve them, discovered that they were raw. Yes, dear readers that she would be me. Not that I haven't made these brownies dozens of times, once with a blinding headache, once with a broken leg and once without my glasses and they always turn out perfectly. Except for last night.

So I served the outside edges, which were delicious covered with whipped cream, and plopped the raw middle into a smaller pan which I baked for another 40 minutes at 300. It worked. But the top looked like an accordian bellows... so THAT batch will become brownie cubes for a Bananas Foster concoction. I even used Endangered Species Chocolate Chimpanzee bars at 72% cocoa (a wonderful company with fabulous chocolate by the way) Sheesh. At least I have the brownies as consolation.

January 10, 2005

When I lived in Rockport, MA. I had an elderly neighbor who started every other conversation with this phrase.That statement usually preceded a very long drawn out complaint against this organization or other, various other neighbors, helicopters flying too close to power lines, the scuba divers at the beach across the street or any one of a number of other issues.

Anthony and I chuckled about it many times until I said it myself yesterday. And it was an understatement, and what I really meant was: What really infuriates me to the point of hysteria is: better living through chemistry.I read in the New York Times Magazine yesterday – Toxic Breast Milk?

I am well aware, and have been for some time, of the toxins we all carry in our bodies thanks to better living through chemistry.And obviously, what we carry in our bodies we secrete in our breast milk - but this article struck a nerve because it highlighted a group of chemicals that we had not yet thought to be worried about.A group of fire retardants called PBDE’s.

The following is from the California Breast Cancer Research Program at: http://www.cbcrp.org.“Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are a class of chemicals used as flame retardants in many commonly used consumer products, such as electronics and home furnishings. They persist in the environment and they accumulate into our fatty tissues. Levels of PBDEs are rising worldwide, and we recently discovered that California women have the highest levels in the world, probably because of the extensive use of PBDEs to meet the State's fire safety standards. PBDEs disrupt thyroid function and impair development in animal studies. There is no information yet on any connection between PBDEs and breast cancer, but the publicized high levels of PBDEs fuel the public's anxiety.”

The list of what I try and avoid grows ever longer and more complex.Add to the list: my home, my computer and my beautiful, body cradling Tempur-pedic foam mattress.Eventually, Anthony and I will build a home based on the principles of Baubiologie in New Mexico.In the meanwhile, there’s not much I can do.And what about my children and grand-children? I’ll have to drag them all to NM with me and build them a home of their own if I want even a slim hope of reducing thier exposure to these and the many other chemical pollutants present in our current homes. But we'll still need appliances, and computers and....